Most 'molly' users actually taking other drugs

Molly is having an identity crisis.

It used to be a simple drug. The name molly originally referred to a pure form of MDMA, the chemical in the rave drug ecstasy. Now molly is all mixed up; federal Drug Enforcement Agency testing in New York has found that it has many chemical identities.

It used to be a simple drug. The name molly originally referred to a pure form of MDMA, the chemical in the rave drug ecstasy. Now molly is all mixed up; federal Drug Enforcement Agency testing in New York has found that it has many chemical identities.

Street drugs are sold with names, not ingredient lists. And with between 200 and 300 new designer drugs on the illicit market, what you’re told often isn’t what you get, said DEA spokesman Rusty Payne.

Reports of molly use have been up, but most of it isn’t traditional molly. Between October 2009 and September 2013, the DEA sent 143 samples of suspected molly seized in New York for testing. Only 13 percent of samples contained any MDMA and the others contained a variety of chemicals with the most common being 4-MEC and methylone.

The chemicals actually being used in molly are similar to MDMA, but more closely resemble bath salts. They cause the same kinds of symptoms: labored breathing, rapid heartbeat and elevated body temperature, a DEA fact sheet noted.

In 2011 and 2012, none of the New York samples tested contained any MDMA, according to DEA.

Synthetic drug makers keep tweaking their chemical formulas to keep ahead of state and federal bans on individual chemicals. Some chemicals found in “molly” are illegal and some are not.

MDMA itself is getting harder to find in any form. In 2008, 2,439 tons of MDMA were seized nationally, according to DEA. By last year, that number had dropped to 433.